Sir Grey
Sir Richard Grey is a character in Stronghold 2. He is featured as an AI opponent in Kingmaker mode. Appearance and personality Sir Grey is an aged fighter. Like all lords except Olaf, he wears metal armor with a griffin on the chest plate. He also wears a grey cape, in keeping with his name. Sir Grey is a veteran fighter with high age. He is a renowned fighter, who has fought countless battles, however slowly loses the grasp of war. Grey is also cautious and safe, not taking unnecessary risks. He is however loyal to the King and is sworn to fight for his cause at any price. Biography Path of Peace Sir Grey is sent by the King to try and relieve his land of its troubles, It turns out that he is ineligible for the task, as he spends a lot of his time asleep, leaving his own estates untended and villages undefended. Sir Matthew Steele is soon sent after him to take care of his estates and hold back the outlaws of Quorndon from harassing his properties. Later, he becomes under siege from an enraged Sir Edwin, who is attempting to siege him in revenge for Steele beating him in a contract race. Grey requests Steele's help in his defense. Eventually, Edwin's troops are defeated and Grey hands his lone estate to Steele for their efforts. Path of War Sir Grey has a rivalry with The Bull, who has been fighting him in his borderlands for over 30 years. At one point, Grey is facing defeat, as the joint forces of McLoud and the Hawk trap him in his own castle. Just before the Hawk's attack could launch, Matthew Steele comes to relieve the siege and repel the attacking army. Steele also manages to remove the threat of outlaws from his lands, as well as drive the Bull out of his mainlands. Afterwards, Grey joins him in court, while a desperate Friar Jacob brings news of Olaf Grimtooth ransacking his monastery and imprisoning Sir William. Grey immediately takes the fight to Olaf's fortifications. Grey stays in the background and helps counseling William and Steele, as well as provide aid to the Friar, after William is saved from Olaf and the monastery is being rebuilt. He eventually leads his party in the lands of Edwin to avenge his treachery, however he pulls out when Sir William decides to face the joint forces of Lord Barclay and his allies. He rejoins his friends after the siege, in Lady Seren's abbey. The Blue Path Sir Grey gets word of a trapped Sir William close by, bordering the Hawk's lands. He immediately rushes to his aid, however returns, seeing the outnumbering siege force of Sir Hugo Blanc. He hands command to Matthew Steele over his castle, who succeeds in rescuing William and repelling the Hawk's counter-attack. After Steele and William kills the Hawk, Lord Barclay encloses them in the Hawk's domain. Grey manages to arrive with some knights in the open field, but Barclay shoots him in the chest with a crossbow, killing him. The Green Path Sir Grey retreats into hiding after the siege of the Abbey. He later emerges from the shadows upon news that Sir William being sieged by his former friend, Matthew Steele. Grey aids William in his defense, facing Steele's and the Bull's army during the siege. He fights fiercely, however he is felled by the attacking forces. Castles and strategies Sir Grey is an all-round opponent, using a modest economy with a large castle. His attacks are usually larger, while his defenses are not too numerous. Castle Sir Grey constructs a rectangular castle of stone walls. He builds one entrance with a main gatehouse and two round towers, putting ballistae in them. His walls cover a large interior, where most buildings are placed. Archers are spaced out throughout the walls and towers. Economy Grey runs a relatively small economy. He builds a few workshops, however does not focus much on popularity. He gets iron and stone and produces apples and meat for his peasants. He also grows grapes for wine in the Lord's Kitchen for a small honor boost. Unit compositions Sir Grey uses a low variety of barracks units. They are a mixture of cheap and robust units, making armies fairly easy to produce. *Defense: archer (guarding walls), swordsmen (guarding spots) *Harassment/estate force: spearmen, catapult *Offense: archer, spearman, swordsman, catapult, mantlet How to deal with Defense Sir Grey's attacks are rather easy to whether if you know what you are doing. First, make sure you have towers with ballistae and/or mangonels in them. Add as many archers and crossbowmen as will fit. When his attack comes, you should manage fine. If there is a breach, fill it with knights. The knights will then kill all of his troops that try and get into the gap. You could also build a sally port and assemble a small army of knights, to deal with most if his troops, horse archers, to give extra missile firepower and hobilars, to dismantle siege equipment. Offense To defeat Sir Grey, you must have a good attack force. I use around 40 horse archers, 20 knights, 30 macemen, 10-25 swordsmen and 40 spearmen (you don't NEED all these, but it makes life easier). First, build several ballistae and take out his tower ballistae and as many of his archers as you can. Keep some knights nearby to kill any troops that attempt to destroy you ballistae while you do this. If he rebuilds his tower ballistae, destroy them immediately. Then build some catapults. It is ideal to destroy his towers, so he can't rebuild his ballistae. Try and station some troops where the towers where, to stop Sir Grey rebuilding them. Afterwards, use your horse archers to mow down any advancing spearmen and your knights to destroy enemy swordsmen. Advance with what remaining troops you have, taking out what is left of Sir Grey's archers and kill him. Quotes For the Kingmaker quotes of Sir Grey, see: /Quotes. "Olaf is vanquished, HUZZAH!" - Sir Grey at the defeat and death of Olaf "I Sir Richard Grey, have NEVER been guilty of cowardice" - Sir Grey when he orders his men to leave Steele to deal with Barclay "What is going on? Where is the King?" - Sir Grey at Lady Seren's abbey "Sir Matthew! Sir William! Good afternoon! The King thought you could do with a little help!" - Sir Grey, just before his death (Good Path) Trivia *Sir Grey is the oldest lord in Stronghold 2. *He is the only lord to die in BOTH campaigns. Category:Stronghold 2 Characters